Sétif radicalized returning Muslim soldiers into future F.L.N. leaders

Evidence

Of more direct significance was the disembarkation, shortly after Sétif, of the 7th Regiment of Algerian Tirailleurs, a unit that had distinguished itself in battle in Europe. Many of its men came from the Constantine area and were utterly appalled by the stories they heard. A number of these returning soldiers were subsequently to become leaders of the F.L.N. Among them was a much-decorated sergeant, Ben Bella, who wrote: “The horrors of the Constantine area in May 1945 succeeded in persuading me of the only path; Algeria for the Algerians.” The Algerian liberal leader, Ferhat Abbas, had condemned the wanton slaughter of Europeans by declaring, at the beginning of the uprising, “those who have urged you to rebellion betray you”. But, on his way to congratulate the Governor-General on the Allied victory, he — like 4,500 of his followers who had had nothing whatever to do with the uprising — was arrested and, later, was forced to admit that Sétif “has taken us back to the days of the crusaders”. — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 79

Categorization

• XREF: Colonial state violence turning its own loyal soldiers into revolutionaries parallels e.g. Vietnam-era experiences of returning veterans. — connects to: Returning Muslim war veterans radicalized by French unfulfilled promises and Marxist techniques; Algerian nationalist leaders came from professions open to Muslims — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 130; Disillusioned war veterans radicalized into a new violent Algerian generation.

Related

• Returning Muslim war veterans radicalized by French unfulfilled promises and Marxist techniques (similarity 0.93)
• Disillusioned war veterans radicalized into a new violent Algerian generation. (similarity 0.84)
• France’s rejection of moderate Algerian reformers radicalized them into revolutionaries (similarity 0.81)
• France’s refusal to restrain settler fascism drove liberal Algerians to the F.L.N. (similarity 0.81)
• Algerian nationalist leaders came from professions open to Muslims (similarity 0.79)
• Algerian migrant workers in France returned home carrying radical political ideas. (similarity 0.79)
• European liberal intellectuals in Algeria faced impossible conscience conflicts as the war radicalized. (similarity 0.79)
• French repression pushed postwar Algerian nationalism toward armed extremism (similarity 0.79)
• Defeated reformism pushed moderate nationalists toward the F.L.N. and total independence (similarity 0.79)
• Liberal moderates in Algeria became revolutionaries through successive disillusionments (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Disillusioned war veterans radicalized into a new violent Algerian generation. #corroborates (0.72)
• Algerian nationalist leaders came from professions open to Muslims #qualifies (0.40) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 130